Insurgent – Film Review

Before we begin I think I should tell you my YA credentials so you know where this review is coming from. I have read all the Hunger Games books and seen the first two films which I don’t rate too highly. I have read all the Divergent books and liked them more than the Hunger Games though the previous film left me a little cold. As for Shailene Woodley and her troop of men in the world of YA I have read and watched both Spectacular Now and The Fault in Our Stars and have mixed feelings for the former pair and moderate praise for the latter. I’ve done my fair share of reading and watching YA and in particular watching Woodley starring in their film adaptations.

Insurgent, and to a greater extent the Divergent trilogy of four, does not stray far from the dystopian future familiar to YA fans. This second instalment finds Tris (Shailene Woodley), our uniquely gifted female lead, hiding as an outlaw while plotting to bring down the Machiavellian Jeanine (Kate Winslet), our evil leader, and shake up their society which has naturally been split into a number of houses districts factions. Along the way people die, secrets are revealed, and allegiances are tested.

The test of a YA film is arguably not in its originality but in how well it executes what we know is coming. Is the action suitably thrilling? Is the plot understandable to those who have not read the books? (Let’s ignore anyone who hasn’t seen the first film, they are on their own.) Can the actors convince us that the world is real? Does the film ever slip into boredom, ridiculousness, or outright confusion?

For my money Insurgent largely succeeds. It takes the plot of the book and streamlines it so that rather than having characters dotting around back and forth the film has more forward momentum and less down time for the audience to lose interest. The action scenes are exciting and Insurgent makes the most of having the half of its set pieces taking place in virtual reality. The CGI is mostly convincing and lends a hand in creating a real looking world for the action to take place in. With the film confined to a city the size of Chicago (because it is Chicago) a few swooping camera shots help to give the audience a lay of the land and get to grips with the dystopia at hand. As a structure the film is all good and just needs the right cast to populate it.

Setting aside Kate Winslet and Naomi Watts who pop up occasionally to add credibility to the film, and a franchise to their filmography, the casting for the young characters is pretty impressive. For the most part. Woodley herself has a track record for bringing strength and soul to a literary character and does more of the same here. The film really does rest on her shoulders and she, and her sad eyes, do not disappoint. Theo James reprises his role of Four, the love interest, but I couldn’t help but feel as though the film-makers had wisely minimised his screen time. James is not this cast’s strongest performer and isn’t asked to do much more than look sad/angry and generally be but. Woodley’s frequent co-stars, and love interests elsewhere, Ansel Elgort and Miles Teller provide solid support as Tris’ brother and rival respectively. Teller in particular bring a special quality to his performance as the unreadable Peter and provides the only humour in what is otherwise a very dark film.

And boy is it dark. I lost count of the number of people we got to see being shot in the head. All shooting happens just off-screen of course, this is a 12A. Despite the family friendly age certificate Insurgent doesn’t hold back too much as adult themes of death and (OMG!) sex are never far from cropping up. I realise death is part and parcel of the YA genre but here the killing felt that bit more direct.

Overall Insurgent is perfectly fine. A strong cast, a decent pace, and enjoyable set pieces help Insurgent stand out from its predecessor. All is not perfect, there are plenty of convenient coincidences and sometimes everyone seems a little too serious, but for the genre you could do a lot worse.

If you’ve seen Divergent or read the books then there’s no reason not to see Insurgent. For everyone else… good luck to you.

Insurgent is in UK cinemas now.

Focus – Film Review

Watching a mediocre film is not much fun but trying to write about it is even worse. No high praise or undiluted rage; just minor complaints and a general feeling of apathy to share with the world.

Will Smith is a veteran con man who takes Margo Robbie’s amateur thief under his wing when she fails to rip him off. Smith runs a gang of thieves who work together to pull off major heists including stealing watches and picking pockets. Oceans Eleven this is not. Over a short space of time Smith and Robbie fall in love. OR DO THEY?!?!? Then with the initial petty theft completed they do not see each other for three years. It must be true love. They are reunited when Smith starts working for an F1 team as a freelance hustler and lo and behold his new boss’ beau is Robbie. Robbie is in love and out of the scamming game. OR IS SHE?!?!? Events unfold from here in a predictably twisty turning way.

Focus is not just a con movie but has desires on being a romantic comedy too. As such it needs to succeed on two fronts to win over its audience; it needs a strong con and a believable romance. Sadly it has neither. Rather than stealing millions from The Man™ in an elaborate web of subterfuge our heroes are out there on the street taking mobile phones from distracted tourists before selling them off for small amounts. These are the people I am supposed to be on the look out for when I leave the office. These are not the sleek and sexy rogues Focus wants us to embrace. A second scheme in the latter half of the film’s weird structure is a bit more complicated but fails at blowing minds when the big reveal comes round.

So the film does not have a strong con. OR DOES IT?!?!? It doesn’t. But how does the romance stack up? Margot Robbie and Will Smith are both perfectly fine actors, and we should applaud any film that includes an interracial relationship without drawing attention to it, but the chemistry between the two is sadly lacking. We need to believe that, cons aside, at least one of the pair is in love with the other but we aren’t given any reason to. Their time together is fleeting and often filled with deception leaving their romance sceptical at best, and that’s before even thinking about the age difference.

A film that wants to be a sleek and sexy con movie with a romantic comedy twist instead comes across as a mismatched relationship between two petty thieves. There are a few laughs along the way, and some welcome distraction in the form of Adrian Martinez, but for the most part Focus is just a bland film about unlikeable criminals who don’t seem to pause for a second to question the morality of their chosen profession. If you are looking for an inoffensive film then you have found it, but if you want to see something truly exciting I suggest you look elsewhere.

Focus is on general release now.